Baseline testing
Sporting organisations perform baseline testing for brain function as a pro-active effort towards better brain health of athletes at risk of concussion. By comparing baseline and post-concussion scores, medical professionals, coaches, and athletes are able to make more confident decisions about concussion severity, treatment advice and return-to-play timelines.
Concussion is a risk in many sports, but especially those involving body contact, collision or high speed. In Australia, the highest prevalence of concussion is in rugby league, Australian rules, and rugby union. It is also common in cricket, soccer, netball, basketball, equestrian, martial arts and hockey.
Three measurements can be used to assess for changes in brain function after a head injury, but the most reliable measurement is one which incorporates a multifaceted approach, including score for:
1) Cognitive performance
2) Oculomotor
3) Balance
- Neurocognitive: assessments have for a long time been the gold-standard of baseline testing for concussion, and since their introduction in the 1980’s they are now available as online tests. Neurocognitive assessments will test things such as memory, processing speed, and impulse control, to give an indication of the cognitive performance of the brain.
- Oculomotor: Eye movement recruits over 50% of the brain, making it a sensitive and objective biomarker for head injuries. Recent research has shown that impairments in eye-movements correlate with various severities of traumatic brain injury.
Eye-tracking technology offers an objective and time-efficient method of measuring brain function, with the average test taking approximately 5 minutes. Baseline oculomotor testing applies the latest technology in concussion management and represents a moral initiative from sporting organisations towards better brain health and the preservation of quality-of-life. Learn more about instruments of assessment.
Advantages of using oculomotor testing for baseline screening:
- Objective measures (i.e. measurements are quantitative, and it is very difficult to fake an eye test)
- Time efficient, taking approximately 5 minutes
- Gain insight into treatment strategies
- Find out which team members may benefit from sports vision interventions
- Educate athletes about brain function and brain health
- Demonstrate highest level of care for team members
- Reliable test/re-test measurements
- Helpful indicator for return-to-play
- Balance: Evidence supports the use of balance testing for concussion, since balance is decreased following a head injury. Balance is a function of the brain, and although it is multifactorial, the raw data around balance performance can be used as an objective indication of recovery, adding to the reliability of baseline assessments when combined with the results of the other tests.
